2.24 - HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS (2002) & Purity

The next in the HP franchise is the second (and last) Chris Columbus vehicle. Sam theorises tenuously about why multiculturalism may have had a hand in the focus of the narrative, and we talk about why this film makes more sense if you’ve seen them all, the concept of wizarding purity, and the theme of home or belonging.

This Week’s Watching
THE NEON DEMON (2016): Nicolas Winding Refn, Elle Fanning, Karl Glusman
MOANA (2016): Ron Clements, Auli’i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson

Recommendations
INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE (1989): Steven Spielberg, Harrison Ford, Denholm Elliott
THE PATRIOT (2000): Roland Emmerich, Mel Gibson, Heath Ledger
RABBIT-PROOF FENCE (2002): Phillip Noyce, Doris Pilkington, Everlyn Sampi
GATTACA (1997): Andrew Nichol, Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman

Footnotes Firstly, definitive proof of the pronunciation of J.K.’s surname. There’s a good article on recent political developments with links to the ‘no blacks or Irish’-type signs in 1960s Britain, here. This is a great book about purity and other things in fantasy literature (and contains a reference to the linguistically brilliant neologism ‘mudblood’). And, for those unfamiliar with it, there’s more on the ‘Deus Ex Machina’ concept Rob mentions, here. Finally, here’s an article positing that Hermione is in fact the hero(ine) of the series (although these sorts of article are not recommended for those who want to avoid spoilers about the series as a whole).